Sunday, December 1, 2013

Efrat and Chanukah

My hometown of Efratis especially connected to Chanukah. We’re
like this! (Okay, I know you can’t see my fingers, but they’re as close together
as they can be!)

Yes, I know all of Israel loves Chanukah. I know we
are all proud of the bravery and faith of the Chashmonaim. We all tell their stories
to our children, and marvel at their victories. Everyone in the world knows the
miracle of the little jar of oil.

But Efrat puts its “money where its mouth is” where Chanukah
and the HolyTemple are concerned.

Our Zayit hill is packed with references to both Chanukah
and the Temple.
I know that many folks head to Modiin to uncover our connection to the Chanukah
story, but I invite you to join me in a walk around Efrat.

In Efrat, Rechov Matityahu HaCohen honors the father and founder
of the revolt against the Syrian-Greeks.

Rechov Yehuda HaMaccabee and Rechov Yonatan HaChashmonai recall two of
Matityahu’s five sons who led the Jewish people in overthrowing the occupying
forces of the Syrian-Greeks. (Who were the other three? Yochanan, Shimon and
Elazar.) The Chashmonaim dynasty ultimately lasted for 100 years. (It ended
when the megalomaniac king Herod “killed every member of the house of the Chashmonaim in order to claim the throne of Judea for himself.”)

Rechov Menorah commemorates the menorah that stood in the HolyTemple –
first the golden menorah, then the simple menorah of the Chashmonaim, and one
day, IY”H, the magnificent menorah of the ThirdTemple.

Rechov Zeit Shemen reminds us of the oil that was used daily
in the Menorah. (And also the little jar of pure oil that Yehuda HaMaccabbee
found in the Temple.)

And Rechov Nataf and Rechov Tziporen stand for two of the spices
used in the Temple’s
holy of holies. In Efrat today, as in Jewish history, Nataf and Tziporen are
attached Rechov Ketoret, the incense offered twice a day on the Temple’s Golden Altar. The
incense with its eleven very-varied spice ingredients parallels the unity of
the Jewish people in serving G-d. We hope Efrat is a place that promotes that
unity.

From different points on Efrat’s Zayit hill, we can see the
site of the HolyTemple. One day soon, IY"H, we pray we will be
able to stand on our hilltops and see the Temple
itself and the light emanating from its golden Menorah. Until then, our longing
for it continues to grow as we drive upon our streets, and raise our children
in the legacy of Yehuda HaMaccabee, Matitiyahu HaCohen and our HolyTemple.